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Duplex Penthouse

A duplex penthouse is a duplex apartment that’s located at the top of an apartment block and usually set back from the perimeter walls, just like a penthouse. The line between luxury apartments, duplex apartments, penthouses and duplex apartments is quite thin: they are all on the higher end of the spectrum, and an entirely different experience from the usual run of the mill apartment.

Big Benefits

Duplex penthouses combine the advantages of two storey living with those of penthouses. Firstly, a penthouse is spacious enough when it’s on one floor, so you can imagine how enormous it must be with two. In fact, there’s so much room living in a duplex penthouse with a large family is not only possible but even a comfortable experience, because let’s face it, what’s the point of having a large property if three quarters of it is going to be empty anyway?

High life

Secondly you live very high up, certainly the highest property in your block and possibly higher than any other neighbouring blocks. This has several perks, the most obvious one being the view. It’s actually quite easy to see the sea from a penthouse being that very few places in Malta are sufficiently far away from the sea that you can’t see it from high up. But there are also more functional advantages. Being perched so high up means the noise from any roads or urban areas below won’t reach you. It also means that you won’t have to deal with any heavy footed neighbours living on top of you. In fact, generally people are below you, so you might forget you are even living with other people in a block. The private lift certainly doesn’t help in this regard either.

Extensive outside areas

Duplex penthouses also share the outside area advantages of both duplex apartments: balconies on two levels and penthouses: huge terraces. Obviously, every duplex penthouse is different, some have two terraces on two floors, others have two balconies on two floors and every mix and match combination in between. Whatever the variation however be assured you’ll have plenty of outside space that you can use to both dine and relax al fresco, barbecue some ribs or hang out your laundry (although preferably not in that order, unless of course you might want a smoky t-shirt). Sometimes all that space might even come in the form of a private pool or roof top garden.

Financial considerations...

Most duplex penthouses come luxuriously furnished and highly equipped, either to rent or to buy, though you will occasionally come across highly finished ones sans furniture for you to deck out to your heart’s desires. As a property they come with the advantages and disadvantages of any other apartment, besides being worth more. That is, you can have a lot compared to a similar house for a cheaper price, but they appreciate at a lower rate since you don’t own the land per se. Whether to buy or rent any sort of apartment versus to buy a house is ultimately a financial decision, and what is better for you is dependant entirely on your own circumstances and needs.

...and practical considerations

Like their other more luxurious communal counterparts, penthouse duplexes also remind us that living in blocks isn’t an inherently unpleasant experience. Obviously, many densely populated cities have known this for close to a century, but driving around Malta you suddenly get the impression that land is in short supply. If everyone in Malta lives in a house there probably wouldn’t be much more of Malta left other than houses. Apartments are a logical solution to this problem, occupying a small footprint relative to their capacity. More significantly, when a block is around 7 stories, as most typically are here, the building becomes greener- better insulated it requires less energy to be comfortable. Lastly, if you find yourself agreeing but think that a penthouse duplex might be a little bit too much for you, why not check out some of our listings for penthouses, duplex apartments or luxury apartments?

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